One-Man University of Latin Music; A Record Salesman Wins a Following for His Knowledge

Published: November 30, 1998

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Mr. Sepulveda's family could not afford to send him to college, he said, so he went to work. He kept buying records, hanging around musicians, asking questions. He befriended an older man, Pepe Rodriguez, who worked at the Record Mart's precursor on West 14th Street in Manhattan. Mr. Rodriguez became like a father to him, and when he retired, he recommended Mr. Sepulveda for the job. Now 50, Mr. Sepulveda has spent half his life at Record Mart.

In the store, Mr. Sepulveda is authoritative and determined, and when a customer asks him about something, he'll bustle over to the CD bins, pulling one one or two or three CD's to demonstrate not only what the buyer had wanted but Mr. Sepulveda's own tangential, connective ideas. He works in a cramped space, and Mr. Sepulveda like the best athletes, makes navigating the terrain look easy.

''I still go see Pepe,'' Mr. Sepulveda said. ''He knew a lot of stuff. But he's just such a beautiful person, so nice to be around. He taught me the beginnings. But I was always going out, hanging with other collectors and musicians. And people in my neighborhood were really into the music, and we would get together with a crowd, listen to different things. I was doing that stuff when I was very young, and I learned lot about Arsenio Rodriguez, Benny More, Cortijo, Orquesta Aragon from older music fans in the area.''

It was the only way to learn. When Mr. Sepulveda was younger, there were even fewer sources of information about the music than there are now, with no magazines and virtually no scholarship. So he watched, and he listened, and he remembered everything.

Mr. Sepulveda has parlayed that information into a lucrative sideline. He's the resident expert at several labels that have been reissuing the music for CD's. For Mr. Sublette, he has produced a five-volume set called ''Cuban Gold,'' regarded as one of the best compilations of Cuban music available. He has also produced some 40 reissues for West Side, a small label in New Jersey that has been reissuing some of the most important older Cuban and Puerto Rican music.

''Harry has really helped us, because he has ideas on what to reissue and what not to reissue; he really knows the catalogue,'' said Hector Varona, a co-owner of West Side. ''And Harry is aware of who is buying what in each part of the country: what will sell in California, what will sell in New York.''

'His Tastes Aren't Predictable'

Both projects strongly reflect Mr. Sepulveda's point of view, which is to find the best music recorded and issue it, even if it is known only to a few. As an example, there is Mr. Sepulveda's compilation for West Side of performances by the obscure but greatly talented Cuban singer Silvestre Mendez. And the whole of ''Cuban Gold'' represents Mr. Sepulveda's esthetic.

''Harry picked the tunes,'' Mr. Sublette said. ''He's very demanding. If something passes his muster, it is good record. He tastes aren't predictable. His standards are high, but he's not close minded. Within the universe of music he likes, anything that's new has a chance.''

Is there a formula that Mr. Sepulveda uses to arrive at his choices?

''No, not really,'' he said. ''I do the compilations in 10 minutes or so. I walk around with the idea in my head; then it comes out. If I waited another 10 minutes, the compilation would be completely different.''

And what are his criteria for what makes a good recording?

''Well, I like lyrics,'' he said. ''I like arrangements, too. But you know, sometimes a record won't have anything but a feeling, and you have to go with that. The person's really trying, and it just makes you feel good. That's what counts.''